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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24638035">Runs in the family</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cupidsfawn/pseuds/Cupidsfawn'>Cupidsfawn</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Naruto</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Anal Sex, Angry Sex, Angst, Blow Jobs, CEO Uchiha Sasuke, Daycare Worker Uzumaki Naruto, Drinking, Emotionally Constipated Sasuke, Hurt Uzumaki Naruto, Implied/Referenced Cheating, Implied/Referenced Drug Use, Jealousy, M/M, Marriage, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, SasuNaru endgame, Uchiha Sasuke Being an Idiot</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-06-10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-30</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 01:41:29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>14,917</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24638035</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cupidsfawn/pseuds/Cupidsfawn</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>"Have you ever even loved me? Have I just been blind this entire time? You must think I'm a real fucking joke."</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Uchiha Sasuke/Uzumaki Naruto</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>103</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>367</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. A good husband</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hey! I haven't written fanfics in a long while, but I have decided maybe I should give it a try since I have nothing else to really do at the moment. This first chapter is a test run! If you'd like more chapters please let me know!!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Every morning is the same. Sasuke wakes up, gets ready for the day, and kisses Naruto on the cheek before leaving for work. Everyday is the same. It’s boring. </p><p>	Sasuke never used to be boring. Sasuke never used to be such a domesticated little dog. In his teen years he would party. His group of friends was small but full of interesting characters. He would drink, do drugs, and dance until he inevitably passed out and woke up in some random person’s bed. He would shoplift and drive late into the night, only coming home once Itachi ripped him a new one over the phone. Sasuke was never boring. </p><p>	However nowadays this is all he is. The sad son of a CEO, married, and on the track to becoming a father in the near future. God, what the fuck? Just the thought of it made him sick. </p><p>        The young Uchiha is married off to an Uzumaki. Naruto Uzumaki to be exact. Their marriage isn't necessarily bad. Sasuke was attracted to the blonde. Naruto was tall, tanned, and toned. He was sweet and easy to please, but he wasn’t exactly what Sasuke thought he would end up with. Naruto was almost childlike. An immature and sensitive man. Sasuke was almost the complete opposite of the blonde. He was rude and hard to please. A man who thought even the best wasn’t good enough for him. </p><p>       Sasuke and Naruto’s marriage consisted of  three things: sex, arguments, and settling. Kind of disappointing if you were to ask Sasuke. As a teen, Sasuke thought marriage was going to be full of love and passion. Full of agreements and openness. The Uchiha-Uzumaki marriage wasn’t that. Maybe Naruto loved him. Naruto always said that he loved him when they fucked. He always said that he was in love with Sasuke as he came, but did that really equate to love? Did saying you love someone during sex really mean anything? Sasuke didn’t know. The youngest Uchiha really didn’t even understand if he had ever really felt love for anyone besides his family. He didn’t know what romantic love was supposed to feel like. Was it supposed to feel like settling? </p><p>       Did Sasuke love Naruto just because he was attracted to him? Did Sasuke love Naruto when Naruto fucked him until he couldn’t speak? Was that love? </p><p>      Sasuke doesn’t know what romantic love is. All he knew was what he was taught. His parents had been adamant that he grew up knowing what a good husband did. Good husbands paid the bills. Good husbands listened to their spouses. Good husbands dealt with any and all shit they were given. Good husbands settled. A good husband made sure that their partner never left unsatisfied.</p><p>      Was Sasuke a good husband? </p><p>     The young Uchiha had a good job. He always listened to Naruto’s loud blabbering. Sasuke put up with Naruto’s constant need for validation and attention. Sasuke did what a husband needed to do, right? </p><p>      However, Uchiha’s are a tricky group. Uchiha’s crave freedom. Uchiha’s crave excitement. </p><p>       Is it Sasuke’s fault for seeking out excitement?</p><p>       Did it make him a bad husband to indulge in life's gifts? Did it make him a bad husband to sleep around? Did it make him a bad husband to do a little coke and drink a little whiskey to dull his senses before he got home? Where was the harm in a like bit of coke? Where was the harm in a little bit of whiskey? Sasuke always used proper protection when he would sleep around. He always made sure the person didn’t have any disease. So no harm done, right? </p><p>       Sasuke thinks he is a good husband. He may stray during the day, but at night and in the morning he is Naruto’s husband. Isn’t that all that really mattered? </p><p>       Sasuke thought he was a good husband. He has done everything he needs to do. </p><p>      So why is Naruto leaving? Why is Naruto grabbing his shit and leaving? </p><p>       Sasuke has been a good husband, so why is Naruto leaving?</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Before the fires</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I hope this chapter came quick enough! Trying to work out a solid writing schedule but it's a little hard to do. I'm shooting for a post once a week or more if I'm lucky! Enjoy!!!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>*Two days prior* </p><p>	Naruto has been acting weird. He had woken up before Sasuke had which was incredibly strange because Naruto always slept in until at least 9 am. It was 6 am. Sasuke had set his usual alarm that rang quietly next to his ear so that it didn’t disturb Naruto. He knows for a fact it hadn’t been what woke Naruto up as the blonde seemed to be wide awake and fully dressed. Also weird. Naruto didn’t go into work until noon so there was really no reason for him to be dressed. Sasuke leaned up in the bed as he watched his husband search for socks to wear. </p><p>	“What are you doing up so early, blondy?” Sasuke asks. Naruto jumped as if he was just caught stealing. The blonde quickly spared Sasuke a side glance before he turned back to digging through the drawer. </p><p>	“I’ve got an appointment today so I have to be ready,” Naruto huffed out as if it was a pain for him to explain. Sasuke quirked an eyebrow up at the subtle attitude in Naruto’s voice. It wasn’t necessarily unusual for Naruto to get an attitude. Uzumaki’s were famously known for throwing temper tantrums from time to time. However, Naruto was never the type of man to give an attitude for no reason. </p><p>	“Yeah? You never mentioned that you had an appointment of any kind recently,” the Uchiha commented as he climbed out the bed. Naruto looked over to his husband and scoffed quietly under his breath. </p><p>	“I did mention it. I told you two nights ago that I have a meeting with the real estate agent today to look at houses. How did you forget that?” Sasuke tried to think back two nights ago to remember this conversation but could barely pin it down. All he could remember was hearing Naruto mutter something about needing some paperwork for something. He was too drugged up to really remember what they spoke about after dinners nowadays. Sasuke hummed as if he suddenly remembered before getting up and walking towards the bathroom. </p><p>	“Sasuke, did you at least remember to get me those papers I asked for?” Naruto asked, finally finding his black socks. </p><p>	“Which papers were those? I’m sorry, I don’t really remember. I’ve been busy at work,” the black haired man grunted. Naruto looked at his husband with disbelief on his handsome face. </p><p>	“You have got to be fuckin’ kidding me, Sasuke. I gave you a list of documents I needed from you today. It was the one thing I asked of you,” the blonde growled in irritation. “You have had two entire days to gather up four fucking pieces of paper for me. You know how important this is! If we are going to move houses we need all of our documents ready.” </p><p>	Sasuke rubbed at his face. He knew he was in trouble. His husband had every right to be pissy about this but the Uchiha really hated arguing in the morning. Sasuke did remember now that he had a small piece of paper in his pocket yesterday. He remember that he threw it away thinking it was some stupid note Naruto wrote him in his shitty chicken scratch writing. He didn't know it was for the paperwork. How was that his fault? Naruto should have called him or something if it was really that important. </p><p>	Sasuke groaned in irritation, “Why didn’t you call me at work to remind me?” Sasuke didn’t really feel like putting the blame on himself today. He was a prideful man and fighting with his husband about paperwork seemed dumb but it was not an argument he felt like losing. </p><p>	Naruto abruptly spun around and pinned Sasuke with a dirty look. “I didn’t know I had to remind you about something I wrote down for you. You have an incredible memory Sasuke. How did you forget? This is important!” </p><p>	Naruto was looking at him expectantly almost like he was waiting for Sasuke to admit to something. Sasuke stared back waiting for Naruto to give up. He could tell his husband was close to blowing his lid. The blonde chuckled bitterly before putting his shoes on. </p><p>	“Whatever. It doesn't matter. The meeting is in 30 minutes and the damned office is 20 minutes away, I have to go,” </p><p>	Sasuke watched his husband grumpily stalk towards him. Naruto sighed deeply and gently grabbed Sasuke’s face. “I am upset with you however I don’t want our days to be bad. I love you. Text me what time you think you’ll be home tonight, yeah?” the blonde leaned in and kissed Sasuke on the lips. It was soft and warm. It felt good. Sasuke always liked kissing Naruto. </p><p>	“Yeah, I will.” Sasuke said. Naruto looked at him for a second with some unnamed emotion before leaving for the meeting. </p><p>	Sasuke was glad the argument didn’t escalate. It seemed like lately all their fights ended up with either Naruto yelling until he was red in the face or them having angry sex. It was a weird situation. Sasuke didn’t enjoy fighting with Naruto. If he could have it a different way he would. The Uchiha was never a confrontational guy. All fights either began over Sasuke giving a snide comment of Naruto pointing something out that Sasuke did. </p><p>	Fighting was exhausting so typically Sasuke would let Naruto talk until he got tired and then they would move on. Sometimes if the fights were especially long and messy Naruto would stay at his friends house until Sasuke gave the dumb blonde some flowers as an apology. They were just that way. Naruto was easy to anger but overly forgiving and Sasuke was slow to anger and held grudges. They kind of fit together in that way. </p><p>	This morning's argument was just a small bump in the road so Sasuke doubted that his husband would even remember it happened once he got home tonight. Sasuke doubted he would remember it even happened himself.</p><p>	Tonight Sasuke had a meeting with someone so either way he wouldn’t really be home for Naruto to bitch at him if he did still feel bitter about this morning. </p><p>	It wasn’t a really important meeting. Sasuke had to meet with a girl named Karin that he had slept with a couple days ago. The problem with sleeping with people was that sometimes they would catch feelings for the Uchiha. Karin was no exception to that. She had been blowing up Sasuke’s phone for days demanding to see him. Asking the black haired man and “hang out” with her again. It was fairly obvious that she had feelings for him. That was partially why he chose to sleep with her. Most men and women didn’t want to have sex with a married man however Karin had already been attracted to Sasuke before he got married so she was easy to convince. </p><p>	Sasuke had told the redhead that he needed comfort in his lonely marriage. After all Karin didn’t know Naruto nor did she know how caring his dumb husband was. However, Karin now thinks that Sasuke owed her something. For all she knew, Sasuke was looking for a new partner and turned to her for that. Sasuke had to cut her off. He would never want Naruto to find out about his partners. They were secret. </p><p>	Karin didn’t enjoy being a secret and he knew that if left to her own devices she would probably be crazy enough to show up to the damn house he shared with his husband. Tonight he was going to end it before it got to that point. After that he would find someone else and move on to his next fling. </p><p>	He would continue to be a married man as long as he remained diligent.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>If you enjoyed this chapter please let me know! Comments are really appreciate! Also let me know what you think in general, I would love to hear it &lt;3 See you guys soon!!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Before the fires pt. 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Sasuke wasn’t really sure what he was going to say once he saw Karin. He knew he had to be gentle, however Sasuke had never been a gentle person. He was blunt and rough with his statements. He knew Karin needed a soft let down. She may be stupid but she was a condicending and vindictive women. </p><p>	Sasuke and Karin had been friends in high school. Karin was actually one of the only friends in his group as a teenager that he hadn’t actually slept with during that time because Karin was caught up in some dumb relationship with some guy she caught feeling for on the track team. </p><p>	Sasuke remembers the absolute dumpster fire of a break up Karin and that kid had. The Uchiha remembers the red hot fury that the girl had when her boyfriend told her he wanted to see different people. Karin had slashed the kids tires and sent his nudes to everyone in the school including the poor kids family members. She had claimed that it was revenge for breaking her heart. </p><p>	Karin had been bat-shit crazy in high school. Sasuke wanted to believe that she had changed as an adult but he was guessing that she was still the same immature girl he was friends with in school. Why else would she willingly sleep with him knowing he was married to someone else. </p><p>	The dark haired man knew it was a stupid decison to pick her to sleep with but he had been desperate to find someone and she was the only person he could find in his contacts that he wasn’t absolutely repulsed by.</p><p>	Sasuke had always been a picky man. He didn’t really care about gender but he did have very specific guidelines when it came to picking men and women to sleep with. If it was a man he wanted someone taller and lean. He needed them to be charming and gentle. Sasuke loved sleeping with the loud mouthed and dumb guys, but he especially loved the dominant ones. Naruto could be dominant but never to the degree that Sasuke would prefer. However, when it came to women he liked them a bit different. He liked women that were shorter and slightly masculine. He wanted the women he slept with to be submissive, not because he wanted to feel like a big man. He just knew that submissive women were easier to fuck and then leave. </p><p>	Sasuke knew he screwed up by picking Karin. Karin may seem submissive at first but she was controlling and dominant. When they had sex, she would demand things of him. Shout at him to fuck her longer or to touch her the way a lover should. Sasuke hated doing that. He never touched the people he slept with gently. They were just fucking, but apparently Karin never understood that message. </p><p>	Karin most likely thought Sasuke liked her back which was not true. Sasuke didn’t hate her but he really had no ties to the redhead emotionally. She wasn’t his type plus she was obsessive about her love interest. Karin was most likely going to be Sasuke’s hardest let go because she would probably demand him to stay. </p><p>	The Uchiha was starting to get nervous as the time got closer to his meeting with Karin. He knew he was going to have to pull something good out or else she was probably going to cause him problems. However, Sasuke no longer had time to think as he saw Karin’s taxi pull up to the bar.<br/>	Karin got out of the taxi with a large grin stretched across her face. “Sasuke,” she shouted loudly, “I’ve been waiting for you to meet with me again. Has your big mean hubby been keeping you home?” </p><p>	Sasuke cringed as she leaned up and kissed his cheeks. The dark haired man gently pushed her away from his face. “I told you not to do that in public,” he grumbled. Karin giggled and apologized as they walked into the bar. </p><p>	Once they found an open booth they took a seat and ordered some drinks. Karin was looking at Sasuke as if he had hung the moon and stars. He mentally rolled his eyes at the obvious display of infatuation. She was ballsy, afterall he was a married man. </p><p>	“I didn’t just come here to have drinks with you, Karin. I have something I want to talk about with you,” Sasuke started. Karin looked at him now with curiosity. </p><p>	She twirled a strand of hair around her finger before she stopped him from continuing. “I know, I know. It’s been a little bit. I bet you were itching to get out of the house,” she giggled, “I’m assuming you want to head out soon, so we'll just have some drinks and then we will leave.” </p><p>	Sasuke shook his head and went to continue but Karin was quick to shush him. “Don’t worry about it Sasuke. I know what you want,” Karin said amused. </p><p>	Sasuke quirked an eyebrow up, “you do?” he asked. </p><p>	Karin nodded and laughed, “Of course, so let’s just have our drinks and then we can leave.” </p><p>	Sasuke looked at her and wanted to clarify but she seemed like she knew what he was talking about. He decided that he was in the clear and pounded his drinks once they came. As he was getting ready to leave, Karin kicked his thigh. </p><p>	“Hey! Don’t think you can leave without me, jackass! It’s my day,” she joked. Sasuke looked at the redhead puzzled. What the hell was she talking about? </p><p>	“Huh?” he asked. Karin stood up and grabbed his arm before leading him outside. Sasuke didn’t quite understand. </p><p>	Karin giggled as she pulled him to the side of the bar where it was darker and less visible to the street. She pawed at his dress shirt for a second and leaned up to kiss Sasuke. The Uchiha quickly pushed her away. </p><p>	“I thought you said you knew what I wanted?’ Sasuke asked puzzled. Karin looked at him with a flirty smile. </p><p>	“Of course I know, silly. You want what you always want. Did you want something different than the normal? I can give you a blowjob if you want.” Karin purred, still trying to touch Sasuke. The dark haired man cringed at the thought of Karin giving him a blowjob. The first and only time he let her give him one she was sloppy and way too eager.</p><p>“No. That’s not what I want, idiot,” Sasuke glared as he pushed her away again. She looked up at him confused. </p><p>“What do you mean?” she questioned. Sasuke rolled his eyes at her. Time to break the news he guessed. </p><p>“I don’t want to mess around with you anymore. I feel like you are growing attached to me and I don’t like it. It isn’t fun once you start acting like this,” Sasuke said. Karin stared at him for a second trying to comprehend the words he had just uttered to her. </p><p>Her face began to turn red as she stared at him. “What the fuck do you mean, Sasuke?” she said, her lips almost up in a snarl. The Uchiha scoffed and her need for him to explain. </p><p>“I’m saying that I don’t want to have sex with you anymore, Karin.” The redhead looked up at him with anger in her eyes as the words came out of his mouth. She looked around for a second before pushing him against the wall roughly. </p><p>“You don’t get to make that decision by yourself! You can’t just sleep with me and then leave me alone like I’m nothing!” Karin yelled. Her face with bright red with anger and her lips turned down in an ugly frown. </p><p>Sasuke chuckled humorlessly, “I can’t make that decision by myself? Are you delusional? I’m a married man. You can’t expect me to have sex with you forever.” </p><p>	Sasuke knew Karin was angry. He probably would have been worried that she was going to do something but all he could do was chuckle again as tears began to well up in her eyes. She sobbed out quietly and turned her back to him quickly. <br/>	“Yeah, you’re right. You are a married man. I should have known you would do this. I should have known you would still be an asshole to me after all these years,” she sniffled, “whatever. It doesn't matter. Do whatever you want Sasuke.” </p><p>	Karin turned back to face him face damp but her eyes no longer contained tears, “Do whatever the hell you want,” she spat at him. Sasuke jerked back slightly as he saw the absolutely venomous glare she wore. “Do whatever the hell you want like you always have. I hope you get whats fucking coming to you.” </p><p>	She pinned him with one last glare before stomping away from him. Sasuke let out a loud sigh as he went to call a taxi. His head was already starting to hurt from slamming down the drinks earlier. </p><p>	Now that Karin is taken care of it was time to head home and lay down. Hopefully when he got home Naruto will already be in bed so that he doesn’t have to deal with the blonde while his head is pounding.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Yay! I stuck to my upload schedule lol. I hope you enjoyed! </p><p>Also! I forgot to mention before but if you want to follow me or ask me any questions my twitter is @peachyyakimaru. It's not really an anime account oof. It's mainly a cottagecore/meme account if anything but there is some anime post. </p><p>Let me know what you think about this chapter! &lt;3</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Before the fires pt. 3</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I'm sorry for the super late update! Got caught up with some family stuff that needed to be handled, but everything is okay now so regular updates should be back now! Enjoy!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>After the bar, Sasuke came home to see the lights still on in the house. The Uchiha sighed at the thought that Naruto might ask him where he was at tonight. He walked into the house preparing himself to hear Naruto’s booming voice call out to him but instead he saw Naruto sitting on the couch taking a drink out of a glass full of auburn liquid. Sasuke quietly took off his shoes, still keeping his gaze on Naruto who had yet to turn towards him. </p><p>	He could hear that the blonde was humming the melody of a Frank Sinatra song to himself quietly. Naruto seemed almost completely oblivious to the fact that someone else was in the home with him. Sasuke walked towards the kitchen and opened the fridge grabbing a water bottle. For some reason his mouth felt dry. </p><p> </p><p>	Naruto still had yet to acknowledge the other man, it was starting to slightly irritate Sasuke as Naruto almost always demanded attention from his husband even when Sasuke was busy or annoyed. Sasuke began to fidget with his sleeve as if waiting for Naruto to ask him a question, however the blonde remained facing forward and continued to hum the tune still seeming awfully oblivious to the presence of the other. </p><p>	Eventually Sasuke’s light fidgeting turned into him shaking his water bottle to make some noise. Naruto remained the same however he seemed to move on to humming the melody to a song Sasuke had never heard before. Irritated by the lack of talking, Sasuke initiated. </p><p>	“What song is that?”</p><p>	Naruto stopped humming and tipped his head back, his voice coming out soft and sleepy “Mm, I’m not sure. I think I heard it playing at a record shop. I really like it. I think the melody sounds absolutely gorgeous. It’s too bad I didn’t ask the name.” </p><p>“I see,” Sasuke replied. Naruto bobbed his head lightly and continued humming his tune. Sasuke’s mouth turned down slightly at the lack of commentary from his husband. Usually when Naruto found something he really enjoyed he would talk Sasuke’s ear off about it. Something as small as seeing a cute button would result in hours of commentary from the tall blonde man. </p><p>	Sasuke felt weird but decided to push the feeling down and made his way towards the stairs preparing to go up. He looked over towards Naruto expectantly as the blonde would normally get up when he saw Sasuke getting ready for bed. His husband always got excited to cuddle for the night. Sasuke waited a couple seconds however the blonde was still sitting in his spot humming. </p><p>	“I’m gonna go up for bed. Are you coming?” Sasuke asked curiously. </p><p>	Naruto lazily tilted his head towards the Uchiha in a way that was almost sultry. “I’m not quite tired yet. I think I’m gonna stay up for a bit longer. Go ahead and get some sleep.” 	</p><p>	Sasuke jerked his head towards the stairs slightly dumbfounded. Naruto always went to bed with him. What the hell? Sasuke grunted and walked up the stairs towards their room feeling weirdly rejected for some reason. He had never had that type of interaction with his husband before. Even when Naruto and him would fight his husband would still always jump to the opportunity for a chance to be close with the dark haired man. Naruto was such a touchy person and typically bedtime was the one time Sasuke was looser on letting Naruto hug and touch him. </p><p>	Sasuke began to breathe a little heavy once he closed the door to their room. It has been an entire day away from the house. The only physical contact they had today was the little kiss before work. Sasuke knows his husband. Naruto is like a touch starved golden retriever. Even the simplest idea that he could get affection from Sasuke made the blonde jump up in excitement. There was no reason that the blonde isn’t in the room with him right now trying to steal touches from Sasuke. There was no reason for his husband to be downstairs. <br/>	Sasuke headed to the shower and undressed before getting inside to clean himself. He was hoping the steam would help him think. Was there something wrong with Naruto? Was his husband sick? Naruto had always been annoyingly considerate about keeping other people away when he was sick with the flu. However if that were the case, wouldn’t he have told Sasuke? Naruto  always opened up about if he was sick or not. Maybe Sasuke was just being weird. Maybe it was the Uchiha acting weird. Sasuke finished cleaning himself and quickly got dressed for bed. </p><p>	He sat down on the thick comforter still a little confused. </p><p>	Why the hell was Naruto still downstairs? </p><p>	Sasuke grumbled but quickly kicked himself for thinking so deeply into it. It was probably nothing he thought as he got situated in bed. It felt a little weird laying down without his gangly husband trying to wrap around him like the blonde usually did at this time but overall it was fine. Everything was probably fine, it wasn’t like the idiot could be thinking anything crazy. Naruto was probably just being a bastard about the little disagreement from this morning and he would probably feel the blonde cuddle up to him later on in the night. </p><p>	Still, Sasuke couldn’t seem to stop thinking about the fact that Naruto hadn’t engaged in any form of skinship this evening. Naruto always sought out touch no matter what even if it was the smallest touch. If Naruto didn’t get skinship he would become cranky and irritable. However, downstairs Naruto seemed perfectly fine and just sleepy. So maybe Naruto already got some skinship today, but from who? Why would anyone touch Naruto like that? </p><p>	Again, Sasuke kicked himself. He shouldn’t be thinking too far into it. Naruto was an idiot so he probably just forgot that he only got a kiss this morning. The blonde is dumb like that so he probably didn’t realize it. </p><p>	Sasuke began to relax and fall asleep but before he could he heard the door to the bedroom open up quietly and then the bathroom door closed before the shower turned on. Sasuke rolled his eyes at the sound of his husband. </p><p>	Again as Sasuke began drifting to sleep he felt the bed shift and knew Naruto was laying down. He quickly snapped his eyes open once he realized that Naruto was laying down to himself on his side of the bed. The blonde not even making an attempt at grabbing at Sasuke like he normally did. Sasuke waited for a couple seconds anticipating the moment he would feel his husband’s warm arm drape around his midsection however the moment never came. </p><p>	He waited for a bit longer, however he eventually only heard Naruto’s quiet snores. Sasuke's heart began to pound in his chest as he turned to look at his husband’s sleeping face. The dark haired man noticed the Naruto had a pillow nestled between his arms that normally would have held onto the Uchiha. For some reason, a frown settled heavily on his lips. </p><p>	Maybe Naruto is sick. Sasuke wondered but eventually gave up and drifted off to sleep.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Tell me what you think!!!! &lt;3</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Before the fires pt. 4</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Sorry for the massive delay on the chapter!!! Please enjoy!!!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>*One day before the fires*</p><p> </p><p>	The first thing to register in Sasuke’s mind as he wakes up the next day is that he is cold. There was no warmth in the bed as there normally would be on any Saturday morning in the Uchiha-Uzumaki house. Saturday was typically the notorious “day of cuddles” as Naruto would put it. Saturday was a lazy day whether Sasuke agreed to it or not. Naruto’s aggressive affection seeking would always somehow assure this. </p><p>	However, as the light began to enter Sasuke’s vision it was very apparent that the blonde was nowhere to be found in the bedroom. The sheets on Naruto’s side of the bed seemed tossed around and slept in, but the spot itself was cold as if no one had been laying down there for what seemed like a while. Sasuke sat up and rubbed his face with mild concern about the whereabouts of his tall husband, but he didn’t think about it too hard as sometimes Naruto would get up before Sasuke to make them coffee. Sasuke figured that was what Naruto was doing. <br/>Sasuke quickly got out of the bed and went to the restroom to freshen up before he went downstairs to see what Naruto was up to. </p><p>	As Sasuke got downstairs he was even more puzzled as again Naruto was nowhere to be found and there wasn’t the typical scent of freshly brewed coffee filling the air. With mild irritation and partial concern Sasuke began checking the lower area of the house. He began to grow worried as he quickly realized that Naruto was not downstairs either. Anxiety was starting to hit Sasuke at an alarming rate. It wasn’t normal for Naruto to leave the house and not tell Sasuke about it and it certainly wasn’t normal for the blonde to do it on a Saturday morning of all times. </p><p>     Sasuke began pacing around the length of the downstairs when he briefly caught sight of blonde hair through the back garden window. Sasuke slowly made his way to the back door confused as to why Naruto was in the garden. When he finally made it to the window where he could catch a full view of his husband he was winded. </p><p>	Naruto was seated on one of the garden benches, hunched over and typing very quickly on his phone. This in itself wasn’t weird, however the thing that made Sasuke baffled was the cigarette hanging from his husband's pink lips. Naruto used to smoke when they were first introduced to one another however after about three months of Sasuke’s disgusted side comments about the habit Naruto had quit. Sasuke knew Naruto did. He was 100% positive Naruto had stopped smoking on the daily. As far as Sasuke was concerned the last time he saw Naruto smoke was when the blonde had been told that the small preschool that Naruto used to work at was being shut down. Naruto had been so stressed and heartbroken over it that he had begged Sasuke to let him go smoke just one cigarette. So now seeing Naruto with the white cigarette hanging out of his mouth he was worried. What would make Naruto smoke again? </p><p>	Sasuke walked away from the garden window confused and slightly panicked, but he figured that since Naruto hadn’t said anything or woken Sasuke up it wasn’t anything too urgent and that once Naruto finished up outside he would tell Sasuke. In the meantime, Sasuke figured that he should at least brew a pot of coffee for him and Naruto. </p><p>	As the coffee was finishing up, Sasuke heard the back door open and Naruto entered the kitchen. Sasuke looked at his husband for a second appreciating Naruto’s slightly messing hair and crystal blue eyes before Naruto made eye contact. </p><p>	“Good morning, Sas,” Naruto greeted as he went to the cabinet to grab two coffee mugs. Sasuke quirked an eyebrow at the lack of physical touch from Naruto, but didn’t say anything. </p><p>	“Good morning,” Sasuke murmured before taking the mug Naruto offered him. The blonde gave him a half hearted smile and poured them both coffee. They silently went to work dressing their coffee respectively however Sasuke kept glancing at his husband waiting for the blonde to start up his usual spiel about their Saturday plans but Naruto remained silent and walked to the living room to sit down. </p><p>	Sasuke was beginning to become irritated but Naruto’s lack of words and touch. It wasn’t like the blonde to be to himself like this. Naruto was always overly touchy and had a loud mouth. Silence and no touching was not like Naruto and it was beginning to become clear that Naruto was in some sort of mood or something had happened. Sasuke wanted to ask but he was never one to start conversations about those things so instead he just remained quiet and watched as Naruto turned on the TV to some crime show. </p><p>	Naruto had a habit of calling Sasuke over to sit on his lap to cuddle on Saturdays. Sasuke initially had been dismissive about it but as time went on it became something that they did every Saturday. Naruto would turn on a show and him and Sasuke would sit together and drink their coffee while watching. Sasuke waited silently in the kitchen for Naruto to call him over however it never came. Sasuke was beginning to feel antsy about it. The Uchiha never initiated affection like that. Naruto was always the one to start something or ask Sasuke to come to him. Sasuke was starting to get frustrated as he was almost done with his coffee and yet he still hadn’t been invited to come sit with his husband. It was almost beginning to feel like punishment. </p><p>	“Hey Sasuke,” Naruto called out. Sasuke perked up, almost happy that his husband was finally going to ask him to come to him. </p><p>	“Yeah?” Sasuke asked. He cringed for a second as he sounded a little eager. </p><p>	“I’m gonna go into work today and help Hinata out with watching some of the kids.” Naruto said while getting up from his spot. Sasuke stared at the Uzumaki in silent shock. Naruto never works on Saturday.</p><p>	The dark haired man simply nodded as his husband looked at him and then went up stairs. Sasuke’s chest began hurting as he realized that not only did Naruto decide that he was going to work on the one day he and Sasuke spent time together but that the blonde also had yet to touch Sasuke at all today. Sasuke was confused.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Before It All Crashes and Burns</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>A new chapter to spread some holiday cheer!! I hope everyone has a good holiday season! May happiness, love, and prosperity follow you into 2021! I love you all!!!!!!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>*One day before the fires*</p><p>	Sasuke was never the type to overthink. Overthinking would lead to nothing good at the end of the day, but what else was he supposed to do? Naruto was acting so strange. He was distant and quiet. Something that seemed normal for Sasuke himself but never for his blonde counterpart. Naruto was never the way he was acting today. </p><p>	This new version of Naruto was weird. New but not a good type of new. He was a scary, unfamiliar type of new. A type of new that Sasuke had always wanted to see but never realized would be so uncanny. A new that made Sasuke’s heart grow heavy and restless. </p><p>	Naruto was the type of husband that loved spending all his free time with his partner. Naruto would usually jump at the chance for an uninterrupted Saturday with Sasuke. He would usually be over the moon at the thought that Sasuke would allow that brief cuddle session or the simple domestic act of making coffee together. That was just how Naruto was. A happy, affectionate, and loving husband. So to see him suddenly switch away from that act almost seemed frightening</p><p>It perplexed Sasuke. As far as Sasuke could think, he hadn’t done anything major to make Naruto get pissy with him. The only thing he could really think of is that he had forgotten to get those damn papers in order for the realtor thing, but that wasn’t really his fault. After all, had Naruto expressed the importance more, Sasuke probably would have remembered, but maybe not considering how fucked up Sasuke had been when Naruto told him. Regardless, Sasuke didn’t think that something like that could have possibly been the cause of Naruto’s sudden personality change. At the end of the day late paperwork wasn’t really something Naruto would blow a fuse over.</p><p>The only other option Sasuke could really think of was that maybe one of Naruto’s stupid friends had told Naruto some shitty rumor about Sasuke and it put Naruto into a bad mood. If that was the case then it was probably going to be hell having to convince Naruto that everything was actually okay. </p><p>It wasn’t as if Sasuke cared about any of the rumors. Naruto never really believed they were true. Naruto was always just worried about whether or not Sasuke was okay after someone had spread a “rumor” about him. They weren’t necessarily all rumors of course. Sometimes the truth would come out about something that Sasuke had done but Naruto never believed anything that was said unless the Uchiha admitted to it himself.</p><p>There had been a time prior when a fling of Sasuke had started telling multiple people that Sasuke had fucked them then told them to “piss off”. They had said that Sasuke had been rough with them in bed and that Sasuke had a preference towards dominant men. Pretty much had spread his sexual preferences out for everyone to see. All of it had been true, but at the end of the day Naruto had happily believed that they were all fake rumors from an upset intern that had been turned down. That was the excuse that had soothed Naruto’s poor heart. Unfortunately, it wasn’t a good enough excuse to get Naruto’s nosey ass friends off of Sasuke’s back. After that rumor had done it’s rounds it had made its way into the pocket of people Sasuke hoped it wouldn’t make it to. </p><p>The rumor had spread to Naruto’s smartass lawyer friend, Shikamaru. A tall, quiet, and lazy man. However, the asshole had asked Naruto about what he thought about the rumor and how weird it was that a similar rumor had been spread about Sasuke two months prior. Shikamaru had kept bringing it up. In fact, Shikamaru felt the need to bring it up everytime a new rumor surfaced. He had even felt the need to bring it up during a group dinner Sasuke and Naruto had attended together. Every time Shikamaru would bring it up it had always been quickly shot down by Naruto adamantly saying that rumors will always circle especially when it involves someone as well known as an Uchiha. It was almost admirable how vehemently Naruto defended his husband. Sasuke almost felt the slightest bit bad about lying to the dumb blonde man.</p><p>Sasuke could only assume something similar happened to that degree once again as Naruto was clearly upset. The path that seemed to make the most sense to the Uchiha at the moment would be to wait until Naruto got done helping Hinata at work and let him ask Sasuke at his own time about the rumor. A simple fix, practically speaking. Sasuke wouldn’t have to deal with the weird change in Naruto for much longer if everything went to plan as he hoped it would. </p><p> </p><p>~</p><p>	The day was almost done. The sun was going down. By now the daycare should have been long closed. It was weird. At the daycare that Naruto worked at, Saturdays were always the least busy day. Typically they would close the daycare at around 3 PM. It was now 8 PM and there was no way in hell Naruto could possibly still be working by now. </p><p>	It irked Sasuke that Naruto had left to help out on a Saturday in the first place as Naruto never took the Saturday shifts. It was always Hinata, Ino, or Hinata’s sister that worked the Saturday shift. But to make it even worse, Naruto had yet to come home from work and it was far passed the closing time. That must mean that Naruto was either hanging out with his stupid group of friends and didn’t tell Sasuke about it or the daycare was staying open weirdly late. Either way Sasuke wanted to know why his husband wasn’t home yet. Naruto usually always came home before Sasuke and he always came home before dinner the majority of the time. It felt weird for Sasuke to be home alone with no company. Most of the time when Naruto made plans to go out with friends or family, Sasuke would invite one of his “friends” over to keep him company until Naruto came home. He didn’t today. He felt weird.</p><p>	Sasuke felt really weird. He felt almost sick at the thought of someone coming into the house before Naruto came home. He felt an uncanny urge to just stay downstairs on the couch waiting. </p><p>	But unfortunately, as Sasuke waited for the blonde man to come home. The night grew quieter and cooler until midnight rolled around. </p><p>	As the clock hit midnight, Sasuke felt the exhaustion from waiting take over him. The Uchiha was slowly beckoned into sleep, curled up on the couch still waiting for the company of a certain blonde man.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Next chapter is gonna be fuckin bonkers. I'm really excited to get started on it lol. Any theories on how it's gonna pan out? Hmmmmm...</p><p>We will just have to see! Next chapter will be out January 1st or 2nd! Depending on my work schedule for next week :)</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Whispers of Trouble</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>As soon as Sasuke woke up a bone deep feeling of dread crept into him. The living room was frigid. The lights were still on from the night prior. Everything was just as it was when he fell asleep. Everything. </p><p>	It was almost like Naruto hadn’t come home. It was almost like Sasuke was the only one in the house. But there was no way Sasuke was the only one home. Naruto had to be home as well. It was a Sunday and Sasuke knew for a fact that Naruto hadn’t planned anything for today. </p><p>	Sasuke slowly got up from the couch. His back ached from being curled up on the semi stiff couch, but he didn’t really pay any mind to the dull ache as all he could think about was finding where Naruto was. He gently padded his way throughout the downstairs of the house checking for any signs of his husband. The weird thing was that there seemed to be no trace that anything was moved around. There was no coffee brewing, no music on, nothing. It was quiet. </p><p>	Stiff as a board, Sasuke made his way upstairs. Naruto had to be upstairs. Sure it was weird that Naruto came home and went to bed without him but that was okay. Sasuke didn’t always have to sleep with his husband after all. It would be okay as long as Naruto was in bed. </p><p>	That hope that Naruto was upstairs was quickly stomped out as the bed was untouched and the room was cold as if no one had been in there at all. There were no clothes on the floor to show Naruto had gotten undressed yesterday. There were no annoying water droplets left on the bathroom counter to show that Naruto had messily brushed his teeth and washed his face. There was nothing. It almost looked like Sasuke was the only one that lived there. To anyone outside of the house, it would seem almost as if Sasuke lived alone, but the slightly larger set of clothes and shoes in the closet and the second toothbrush near the sink told him that Naruto did live there. </p><p>	It was unsettling. All of Naruto’s belongings were in the home but Naruto himself was the only thing missing. Sasuke’s stomach began to turn. This was a weird day. There was no way in hell that Naruto would make plans two days in a row without blabbing about it to the Uchiha. <br/>	Sasuke never called Naruto first but something in his gut told him that he needed to find out what was happening. It wasn’t like Naruto to do this to him. Sasuke quickly took out his phone and dialed Naruto’s number. The phone rang and rang, but it never picked up. The phone line rang over and over, but it was never picked up. Sasuke kept calling. He needed an answer. Sasuke called eight more times. </p><p>	The line was never answered. </p><p>	Naruto never picked up the phone. </p><p>	Naruto would never ignore Sasuke’s calls.</p><p>	He didn’t pick up the phone so clearly something must have happened. Something had to have happened to him. There was no other reason that Sasuke's phone calls wouldn’t be picked up. Naruto would answer no matter what. </p><p>	Frantically Sasuke looked through his phone trying to find Naruto’s parents. He slowly realized that had never really cared enough to ask for their phone numbers. He was so stupid. How did he go so long without the numbers of Naruto’s parents. Fuck. </p><p>	Fuck. </p><p>	Sasuke looked for people in his contact list that Naruto could possibly know. He found the number of Naruto’s coworker Hinata in his phone and sighed in relief a little. Hinata had to know where Naruto went. She must have been the last one to have seen the tall blonde man. The Uchiha quickly dialed her number. </p><p>	Her phone rang for two times before a soft woman's voice sounded out, “hello?” </p><p>	Sasuke had never really spoken to Hinata before. He had only really seen the women when he would sometimes see her at the dinners Naruto would host. She was a black haired woman with soft features and kind grey eyes. She was quiet and gentle. Almost Sasuke's perfect picture of a female partner. That was neither here nor there. Sasuke sighed quietly. </p><p>	“Hello. This is Sasuke Uchiha, Naruto’s husband. I was wondering if you knew where he was? He didn’t come home last night.” There was a pregnant pause on the line before Sasuke heard what sounded like Hinata sigh softly. </p><p>	“Uh yeah. Naruto...um he asked me not to say where he is. He wants some space.”  Hinata sounded shaky. Almost like she was scared of what was going to be said to her. </p><p>	Sasuke stood still almost dumbfounded. What the fuck had she just said? Naruto didn’t want him to know where he was? What the fuck? What does that mean? Sasuke felt like the air had just been knocked out of his lungs. </p><p>“Pardon me? He said what? Listen, I’m not sure we are on the same page here. I need to know where my husband is,” Sasuke said breathlessly. Every second that passed felt like an eternity. Hinata wasn’t answering him quick enough. </p><p>The quiet voice rang out again over the phone a little more confident now, “I’m saying that Naruto told me that if you called I shouldn’t tell you where he is. He said that he needs some space from you.” </p><p>Sasuke felt his hand ball up in a fist by his side. He didn’t find her answer to be acceptable. That wasn’t what he wanted to hear from her. Sasuke wanted to know where his husband was. He needs to know damn it. He married Naruto and he deserved to know where his husband was especially if his husband hadn’t come home the night before.</p><p>	Sasuke gripped the phone tightly, “That doesn’t answer my question. I asked where is my husband?” Sasuke heard Hinata huff. </p><p>	“He doesn’t want to speak to you Sasuke. I’m sorry. I can’t tell you anything else. I think you should respect what he wants,” Hinata said. This time she sounded almost sorry for him. </p><p>	Sasuke felt his hand quake as he held his phone to his ear. He quickly ended the call with Hinata and stood stock still in the middle of the bedroom slowly realizing the weight to Hinata’s words. </p><p>	Naruto wanted space? Why would Naruto need space? There was no reason Naruto would need space. Naruto never needed space. He always wanted to be as close as he possibly could be to Sasuke. Something was grossly wrong. </p><p>	Sasuke could feel bile filling the back of his throat. He felt sick. Naruto was upset at him. This felt completely different then when Naruto had been upset at him before. Naruto, no matter how angry he was, never would ask for space. Even when Naruto was beyond pissed at Sasuke, which wasn’t uncommon, he never wanted space. He would always just grumpily curl up in bed with Sasuke. He would then proceed to get over it by the morning. <br/>	It wasn’t possible for Naruto to be this mad at him. The Uchiha hadn’t done anything wrong. Sure maybe he was forgetful sometimes and maybe he wasn’t always the nicest husband, but that was no reason for Naruto to be this mad at him. </p><p>	The sick feel rose higher and higher until eventually Sasuke had to sit down. His mind raced and his heartbeat was loud in his ears. The urge to go find Naruto weighed heavily in his chest. It would be so easy with his resources for him to go out and find where the blonde man had gone. After all, he was friends with some very high up law officials, but what if that just made it worse. What if Sasuke found Naruto and that just made the fight last longer? </p><p>	Sasuke sat and stewed over it for a while before coming to the conclusion that finding where Naruto had gone was more important. He quickly sent a text to Suigetsu asking him to find Naruto’s location. Suigetsu was a very high end locator for law enforcement. Sasuke knew that if anyone could find Naruto it would be Suigetsu. </p><p>	Sasuke flopped back onto the bed. His chest was heavy and his brain almost fogged. There was something so deeply wrong with this entire situation. There was something that Sasuke couldn’t quit pin down. Why would Naruto need to get some space from Sasuke? What was the reason for Naruto ignoring him? </p><p>	Suddenly, his phone dinged with a text notification. Sasuke snatched his phone up hoping to see a text from his husband and was quickly disappointed to find that it was only Suigetsu's response. However, his hope quickly came back as he read the address that Suigetsu had sent him. </p><p>	Naruto was with his own family. Sasuke had only been to the Uzumaki household two times prior however he remembered the cottage-like home where they resided. Almost completely opposite of the expensive Uchiha household. </p><p>	Sasuke made up his mind. He was going to go see Naruto immediately. </p><p>	He needed to know what was wrong.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Okay, I know I said this was gonna be the crazy chapter but I couldn't help but draw out the suspense a little more lol. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this chapter!! I made it a little longer than usual to hopefully make up for the small cliffhanger at the end. &lt;3 </p><p>I promise next chapter will be what we have all been waiting for!!!!!! Stay tuned, lovebugs!!!! </p><p>Also, Happy New Year!!!! I hope love and prosperity graces you this year! &lt;3</p><p>P.S sorry if there were any typos in the chapter!! I wanted to get this chapter out asap so I proof read only two times. Hopefully there was no major mistakes I skipped over.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. A Great Storm</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Guys!!!! This is my longest chapter yet!!! I'm super happy with it!!! I hope you enjoy &lt;3</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Everything looked normal as Sasuke pulled up to the Uzumaki residence. The beautiful home stood on a hillside, giving the family an almost perfect view of the small valley below. The front of the home had large overarching wisteria trees. The front garden was blessed with white chrysanthemums. Sasuke almost regretted not visiting the Uzumaki estate more. It was a truly amazing home. It made the Uchiha house look cold and garish. </p><p>	Sasuke remembered Naruto had told him before that when they moved homes he wanted a house similar to his parents. Naruto was a sucker for the hillside. </p><p>Snapping out of his brief daze, Sasuke sat in the car staring at the residence in an almost childlike fear that he had never really felt before. What if when he knocked on the door Naruto’s hot headed mother opened the door? Kushina had always been an intimidating woman. Her angered gaze had even unnerved Sasuke’s own father, Fugaku. If something bad had happened with Naruto she must know about it by now. Naruto told his mother everything, unsavory or not. He was a momma’s boy at heart. The other end of the spectrum would be if Naruto’s father, Minato, opened the door. </p><p>Minato was a very warm man. Sasuke had been put off from him when he had first been introduced to him. He wasn’t used to that type of fatherly warmth as his own dad was stern and cold much of the time. If Minato knew something he would never bring it up, but Sasuke would know immediately as the warmth in the man’s voice and demeanor would be gone. Minato, like many politicians, was able to hide his emotions well in the face of a problem. However, there would always be the lack of warmth from the man that would be a clear indicator that he was upset. Sasuke had only felt it once when Minato came to the house to talk to Sasuke about some of the bad business practices that Fugaku had been using behind the back of the government. Sasuke didn’t know what he would do if Minato opened the door. </p><p>	Sasuke hoped dearly that Naruto would open the door. He needed to know what was wrong. He had to know. It was eating him up. Naruto was never the avoidant or flaky type so for him to be acting the way he was something terrible must have happened. The problem was that Sasuke couldn’t really think of anything that he had done to piss off his husband. </p><p>	He had been doing everything he needed to do as a husband. He paid the bills, he came home for dinner, and he made sure to check on Naruto when he could. It wasn’t like he had abandoned his duties as a husband. He was raised better than to leave his home unattended to. </p><p>	All things considered, Sasuke thinks he does a pretty good job at being an above average husband. Naruto didn’t really have anything to complain about. He gave Naruto a pretty easy existence. He made most of the money so that Naruto didn’t have to follow his father into politics like Minato had wanted him to do. He always put up with Naruto’s whining and weird habits. Hell, he had even been more than giving in the bedroom. </p><p>	Sasuke was nervous. This marriage was important. The Uchiha company needed Namikaze-Uzumaki’s support politically. It was very widely known that many lobbyists wanted the Uchiha company to be shut down. Really the only reason the Uchiha family hadn’t been shut out yet was due to Uchiha’s marrying into families that had high political standing. Sasuke’s father would surely have Sasuke’s head on a spike if Naruto decided to leave the marriage. Sasuke already wasn’t his father’s favorite. Itachi had long ago taken the title of favorite child as he had a high position on the government's medical board. </p><p>	Of course Sasuke was also just nervous because Naruto had never given him this type of treatment before. Sure sometimes Naruto would be angry at him and maybe sleep elsewhere but most of the time he would always come back and curl up in bed with the dark haired man. Naruto had always been a pretty simple character to crack. </p><p>	Pushing all his worried thoughts aside, Sasuke quickly got out of the car and made his way to the front door of the Uzumaki estate. His heart pounded at the thought of what was going to happen, but he decided to ignore it. He needed to find this out. He paused as he went to knock on the door. He hadn’t noticed when he left the car but his hands were shaking. Maybe the nervousness was getting to him. He had never really felt like this before. He had never been truly intimidated by Naruto like this. </p><p>	He took a deep breath before knocking as confidently as he could on the elegant oak doors. It felt like an eternity before the door swung open revealing the face of none other than his husband. </p><p>	Naruto didn’t look like himself. He had small dark shadows under his normally bright eyes. His mouth was curved down in a frown that almost seemed outlandish. He looked exhausted. Something that Sasuke never thought he would witness. </p><p>	Naruto looked at Sasuke with squinted eyes almost as if he didn’t recognize that he was staring at the man he had married. Sasuke gathered himself. </p><p>	“Hey, you don’t look too good. Are you sick or something?” Sasuke immediately wanted to kick himself in the ass as the sentence left his mouth. Of course the first shitty sentence that comes out of his mouth is a comment about his upset husbands appearance. </p><p>	Naruto stared at Sasuke with a look similar to disbelief. “Are you fucking serious, Sasuke?” </p><p>	Sasuke felt himself shiver at the sound of Naruto’s voice. He didn’t sound like his normal self. His voice sounded monotone but sharp as if he was exasperated but didn’t have enough energy to show it. The Uzumaki was staring at Sasuke almost daring him to say more. Sasuke cleared his throat as a small ball of discomfort began forming in his stomach. </p><p>	“I just wanted to see what was wrong. Why didn’t you come home last night from work?” Sasuke asked. He tried to keep his voice strong but the innate feeling that he was messing up was circling him. He was so nervous. It was strange. </p><p>	Naruto looked at Sasuke with a weirdly unfocused gaze. The blonde slowly opened the door up wider. “You know what? Come on in, babe. Let’s talk for a bit,” There was bitter quality to his voice that was so unnatural to Naruto’s naturally light tone of voice. </p><p>	It was off putting that Naruto had avoided the question. Most of the time he would just answer if something had happened or not. It pretty much confirmed to Sasuke at the moment that something major must have happened.</p><p>	The blonde guided Sasuke to the cosy living room of the Uzumaki household. It was quiet with only the soft sound of a news anchor droning on in the background. Naruto slowly sat down on the couch and pointed to a seat near it for Sasuke to have a seat as well. Sasuke felt stiff. The entire interaction thus far felt wrong. Naruto wasn’t a cold person. Something had to be horribly wrong. </p><p>	“So before we talk about my absence, do you have anything in particular you’d like to tell me, love?” Naruto asked. His voice had its usual sweet lilt however it also somehow sounded bitter and spiteful in a way Sasuke couldn’t explain. </p><p>	In all honesty Sasuke didn’t have anything to discuss. He had no clue whether or not there was a rumor going around. He didn’t know what was up at all. He felt completely in the dark, but he knew he should know. Naruto was staring at Sasuke with expecting eyes almost searching for words from the dark haired man. After a moment of quiet from Sasuke, Naruto slid his hands up and down his face seemingly frustrated. </p><p>	“You really can’t think of anything you’d like to tell me? Nothing at all?” Naruto asked with a sigh of exhaustion. Sasuke was starting to feel more and more flustered. What the hell was he supposed to say? Sasuke hadn’t done anything to warrant the treatment he was enduring from Naruto. </p><p>	“Can you just tell me why you’re upset, Naruto? I don’t have all day to sit here and wait for you to say something.” Once again Sasuke immediately regretted his words. The look on his husband's face made his own stomach begin to turn. Naruto looked pissed. He looked beyond pissed as he saw the blonde man's hands ball up into fist where they sat on his lap. </p><p> </p><p>	“Are you fucking with me right now, Sasuke?” Naruto asked, Sasuke could feel the venom almost drip from the words of his husband.</p><p>	Naruto quickly sprung up from his seat and began pacing the length of the living room. Sasuke was scared. This wasn’t his Naruto. </p><p>	“Look, I don’t know what I did. I’m sorry. Whatever I did you know I didn’t mean to do it.” Sasuke said in as calm of a voice as he could manage. He didn’t want to anger Naruto anymore than he already seemed to be. </p><p>	“You’re sorry?” Naruto asked with disbelief evident on his face. “You don’t even know what you need to be sorry for!” </p><p> </p><p>	Sasuke wanted to flinch as he heard Naruto’s voice raise. Naruto almost sounded like Sasuke’s own mother when she and Fugaku would fight. </p><p>	“I know that I need to be sorry. I don’t know what I did but I can see that you’re upset and I just want to make it better, okay?” Sasuke told the blonde man as Naruto continued to pace the room. Sasuke was nervous. </p><p>	Naruto stopped pacing and looked at Sasuke. His face began twisting with a look that Sasuke could only describe as anguish. His husband stood stock still before grabbing the small vase of flowers on the coffee table and throwing them against the wall. This time Sasuke truly did flinch out of shock. Naruto was never one to throw things. </p><p>	“Sasuke, I’m going to ask you something and I swear if you fucking lie to me I never want to see you again.” Sasuke felt his body thrum with anxiety. What the fuck was actually happening right now? Why was this happening? </p><p>	“I wouldn’t lie to you, Naruto.” Sasuke murmured nervously. The dark haired man watched as Naruto came closer and closer to Sasuke until he was standing directly in front of him.</p><p>	“I think I might as well just rip off the fucking bandaid. Have you been sleeping with other people?” Naruto asked. His face looked devoid of his previous anger but Sasuke could tell by the look in his husband’s eye’s that Naruto was still upset. It was almost funny how immediately after the words left Naruto’s mouth Sasuke felt his stomach drop. </p><p>	This didn’t feel like a normal rumor. Naruto had never truly asked something like that. He had always just brushed off any of the rumors about Sasuke having sex with others. He had never asked Sasuke something like this. Sasuke was many things but in this moment in time he refused to be a liar. He hoped with everything inside of him that the truth would end the argument. He hoped that if he told the truth Naruto would understand and they could just go back home. </p><p>	He hoped. </p><p>	Nothing ever goes as he hopes they do. </p><p>	“I have.” </p><p>	Hearing the words of Sasuke, Naruto’s calm demeanor drained as quickly as it appeared. Tears began falling down his soft cheeks and his breathing became labored as if he had just been punched in the stomach. In an effort to somehow comfort his husband, Sasuke reached his hand out to pull Naruto into a hug. However before his hand could fully make contact with Naruto’s skin, it was roughly pushed away. </p><p>	“Don’t fucking touch me! Don’t you ever try to fucking touch me, you bastard!” Naruto yelled hoarsely. His voice sounds so strained and angered, it made Sasuke’s chest hurt. </p><p>	It may sound stupid, but Sasuke hadn’t realized before what would happen if Naruto had found out. He always thought he could just stop one day and Naruto would be none the wiser about what Sasuke had done, but this was nothing like what he thought could happen. He had no idea that his casual flings could turn into this. He would have never imagined hooking up with a few people would end up having his husband crying and in pain. </p><p>	Naruto looked physically sick. Sasuke wanted to comfort him. Something in his chest screamed at Sasuke to hug the blonde, to tell him it wasn’t like what he thought. Sasuke didn’t know what to do. </p><p>	Sasuke tried to walk closer to Naruto but Naruto swiftly backed up every step closer Sasuke came to him. Sasuke’s chest hurt.</p><p>	“Look, it’s not what you probably think it is. I was stressed and things just happened. I know that doesn’t sound like a big deal but you know how I am! I can’t help myself, Naruto!” Sasuke tried to say. He needed to fix something. He needed to. </p><p>	Naruto sobbed. The sound made Sasuke physically squeeze his eyes shut. He couldn’t do it. Why was this happening? This shouldn’t be happening. </p><p>	“What the fuck, Sasuke? Why did you do this to me?! What did I do? I’ve done nothing wrong!” Naruto cried out. Sasuke wanted to agree but the words felt stuck in his throat. He didn’t know what to say. He was speechless. </p><p>	"Have you ever even loved me? Have I just been blind this entire time? You must think I'm a real fucking joke." Naruto cried. Sasuke’s mind raced. Suddenly he felt the dire need to defend himself somehow. </p><p>	“I never said I loved you, Naruto. We are married and I care about you, but I never said I loved you the way you loved me.” </p><p>	“Oh God.” Naruto whimpered, grasping at his chest. He looked like he was in pain. Sasuke regretted what he said but he couldn’t take it back. He knew his pride would be his downfall. </p><p>	Sasuke reached for the blonde man, wanting to somehow try and mend whatever he broke in his poor husband’s chest. His hands never made contact as Naruto slowly backed away from him. </p><p>	“I don’t know what happened to you, but this isn’t who I married, Sasuke.” Naruto’s trembling voice called out. Sasuke’s chest hurt. </p><p>	“Please leave.” Naruto called out softly. He sounded devoid of energy. </p><p>	He sounded done. </p><p>	Sasuke tried once again to touch him but slowly realized he could do nothing to reverse the situation. </p><p>	So, he left the home.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>ahhhhhh!!!!! The long awaited confrontation!!!! I cri :'))</p><p>Anyways, things are starting to become very messy!! My poor bby Naruto! I didn't mean to put him in so much pain omg. </p><p>I'm not sure when I will post next chapter unfortunately :( I have to work everyday until next Tuesday so maybe then but idk. It sucks but I'll try to stay on top of writing chapter 9 for you guys!!! </p><p>I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! I love you all!! &lt;3</p>
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<a name="section0009"><h2>9. A Blissful Mind</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Sasuke has never been a coward. If there was a challenge Sasuke would face it head on. That was just the type of person he was. </p><p>	So, why was it that he couldn’t find it in himself to leave his car and go inside his home? Why was he unable to get rid of the giant inky ball of unease in his chest? It was his house. He paid the fucking mortgage, he should be able to just go inside. But it seemed like any time he finally felt like he built up enough courage the heavy ball in his chest would almost grow larger.</p><p>	Sasuke wasn’t a coward. He wasn’t raised to be a coward, but the thought of being in the house alone made him feel something ugly build within him. It felt like when he was a child and his parents would leave him alone in the large home that was the Uchiha estate. When not even his brother, Itachi, was there to keep him company. When the only thing that was familiar to him was his own sorry thoughts. </p><p>	Sasuke wasn’t a coward. Sasuke would never admit to being scared of anything, but an empty house was something that Sasuke always dreaded. An empty house meant silence. An empty house meant he could think. </p><p>	Sasuke didn’t like to think. Sober Sasuke was too self aware. Sober Sasuke was a sad and cruel little voice that would tell Sasuke everything he had ever done wrong. Sober Sasuke would spit and sneer at what Sasuke had become. Most of the time the little voice would be drowned out by Naruto’s almost continuous banter or the busy work day, but on days when it was silent were the days when the little voice of sober Sasuke got louder and louder until it sounded like someone was yelling into Sasuke’s ear. </p><p>	Sasuke wasn’t a coward, but for the first time in a long time he was afraid. He was afraid of the voice in his head that he knew would begin to get louder once he entered the empty house. Sasuke didn’t want to hear the voice. He didn’t want to be reminded that he fucked up most things in his life. He didn’t want to be reminded that his parents didn’t love him as much as his brother. He didn’t want to be reminded that he screwed up his marriage.</p><p>	Sasuke didn’t want to think. </p><p>	So, he didn’t. </p><p>	As swiftly as possible, Sasuke yanked open the car door and walked quickly into the house. Sasuke needed to find his distraction and quick. He knew if he didn’t find what he needed quick enough, he would start to think. </p><p>	He raced up the stairs and barged into his home office. He knew what he needed was in his office. He knew it was in the second drawer under his desk. He knew he had put it in the back of the drawer right next to some insurance files. He scrambled trying to find it. When he finally felt his hand wrap around the plastic tube he almost sighed in relief. </p><p>	Pulling out the orange and white container, he carefully popped the lid off and poured four Valiums into his palm before knocking them into his mouth and swallowing them. Sasuke didn’t prefer Valium. It was something he hadn’t taken since highschool but for some reason every year he would go get a fresh bottle prescribed, just in case. The thing about Valium is that it wasn’t Sasuke’s normal fix. Sasuke usually liked to do coke. He liked coke, it made him happy. Valium however was the opposite. Valium made him hazy. It made him sleepy and limp. He knew he would have to lay down soon. </p><p>	Sasuke was relieved. His mind was already going blank. He was safe for now from the likes of the cruel little voice in the back of his head. He had to admit it was bliss. The cottony feeling of his mind going blank. The feeling of all the tense muscle in his body going lax. He remembers now why he did it so often in school. </p><p>	Slowly Sasuke made his way to the bedroom to lay down. He wanted to sleep so badly now. He knew that it was still light outside but he was so tired. </p><p>	As he made his way into the room he slowly started to forget why he even took the pills. He collapsed on the bed. His mind seemed blank. Why had he been upset? Why did he take the pills? For some reason he couldn’t remember. </p><p>	The bed was cold as he found his place. Why was it cold? Sasuke couldn’t figure out why the sheets felt so damn cold against his skin. It was uncomfortable.</p><p>	Why was the bed so damn cold? Sasuke wondered as he buried his head into the pillow next to him. The pillow smelled so good. It smelled citrus like but also sort of floral. It smelled familiar. Sasuke liked that smell. He couldn’t quite place the scent though. </p><p>	His head was too foggy. Before Sasuke knew it he began to drift to sleep. The last thought in his mind being, why was the bed so cold?</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I'm sorry for the shorter chapter! Work has been really busy so it's been hard finding time to write. I didn't want to break my uploads up again like before so I decided to type up something shorter. I promise the next couple chapters will be longer. Anyways! I wanted to see how you guys would feel about a chapter from Naruto's perspective? I've been considering it but I sort of like the flow of Sasuke's thoughts. I want to give it a try but if you guys like Sasuke's perspective more then I am down to just solely write in Sasuke's perspective!</p><p>Anyways, I love you guys! I hope you enjoy!! &lt;3</p>
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<a name="section0010"><h2>10. A Gentle Past</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hey guys! Im super sorry about the wait! A lot has been happening so I wasn't able to write but hopefully this long ass chapter will make up for it &lt;3</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>(Naruto Uzumaki) </p><p>	Naruto wasn’t usually the type of person to believe lies. Naruto trusted people wholeheartedly majority of the time. He knew deep down that all people deserved a chance and that all people seemed to have a little bit of kindness in their heart.</p><p>	Naruto trusted blindly and it seemed to always come back to bite him in the ass. </p><p>	Naruto was someone who was strong willed. His father always told him that Naruto would make an amazing politician because his heart was so big. Minato would tell him that Naruto would work for the good of the people and get things done. It was refreshing to hear that Naruto’s heart could be used to help the people. </p><p>	Naruto was a people person. That was why he decided to go into childcare. Naruto remembered when he was younger and his parents would travel out of state often, leaving Naruto with his Godfather, Jiraiya. Jiraiya was a good man but he was someone who would often leave the house to do things all the time. He was a really amazing author and often would leave home to go get “inspiration” for his books. Of course Naruto never held his parents or his godfather at fault for the loneliness he felt during the times when he would be left alone. He didn’t really think all that much about it because it was just something that happened sometimes. </p><p>	Whenever he was alone he often found himself playing outside or trying and failing to do his academy work. Academics had never been Naruto’s strong suit because he didn’t really enjoy sitting in one place doing homework and studying for hours. He had always been a more of a hands on person anyways. It didn’t really matter though. Naruto’s parents never pushed him for academics like most parents did because they knew what he was like. Naruto loved his parents for that. </p><p>	Naruto remembered that when he was a child he would often play with a kid from down the road named Sasuke. Naruto remembered that Sasuke seemed to be a lonely child. Naruto remembers that him and Sasuke would go on great adventures after school whenever their parents weren’t home. </p><p>	The most vivid memory from his childhood was when he and Sasuke decided that after lessons at the academy they would go and follow how far the creek by their homes would go. They had been eight at the time and bursting with curiosity. Sasuke had initially told Naruto that he wanted his older brother to come with them, but Naruto being the rambunctious little boy he was decided that he didn’t want anyone to hold them back. With a little more convincing, Sasuke agreed and after the academy both the young boys began their hunt for the end of the creek. </p><p>	Naruto remembers this adventure vividly because it was one of the most incredible days of his childhood. He remembers Sasuke’s pristine white and navy uniform had become dirty with mud and twigs had littered Sasuke’s usually neat black hair. Naruto hadn’t been any different than that as well. His own uniform had been wrinkled and muddy. His own golden locks tangled and full of little leaves that had fallen from the trees around them. </p><p>	Naruto remembers running by the banks of the creek with Sasuke. He remembered him and Sasuke laughing because they kept falling while they ran. He remembered when Sasuke had jokingly pushed him into the water which led to Naruto dragging the dark haired boy in as well. The part that he remembered most was when he had tripped over a branch and scraped his knee on some of the rocks by the creek. </p><p>	Naruto remembered how concerned Sasuke had been. Naruto was a big boy so he didn’t want to cry in front of Sasuke. But Sasuke had knelt down and asked if he was okay and almost as if a dam had been broken, Naruto’s tear began to fall. Of course even as he cried, Naruto smiled and told Sasuke he was okay. Naruto had just been happy that Sasuke cared enough to ask. </p><p>	After Naruto had tripped they had gone back to Sasuke’s house. When they had gotten there, Naruto remembered that no one had been home. It had reminded him of his house. Sasuke had ended up sitting Naruto down and cleaning his knee. Naruto had remembered that Sasuke had blushed when he bandaged Naruto’s leg. Naruto hadn’t known it then but Sasuke must have liked him. </p><p>	This memory of his childhood was one of the few signs that his friendship with the young Uchiha was going to eventually evolve into something far different. When Naruto and Sasuke turned twelve, the Uchiha family moved. Naruto was young so he forgets why but he does remember Sasuke had been so happy at the academy and kept talking to Naruto about how glad he was that his family was finally all back. </p><p>	He remembers that Sasuke’s happiness had been short lived as after they had parted ways from each other to their own respective homes, Sasuke had come over later that night and told Naruto that his dad had bought a new house and that Sasuke’s family were planning on being all moved in by the end of the month. </p><p>	It had confused Naruto because as far as he knew Sasuke’s family adored the town they lived in. Naruto remembers whenever his mom, Kushina, and Sasuke’s mom, Mikoto, would have tea together Mikoto would speak so adoringly of the beautiful community garden and the large vibrant flower meadow in the center of town. </p><p>	Naruto couldn’t make sense of the sudden move and neither could Sasuke, but they were just children at the time so it was understandable that they wouldn't understand the complexities of the adult problems their parents ever faced. To this day, Naruto still doesn’t know why Sasuke’s family had moved when he was young. </p><p>	After Sasuke and his family had moved, Naruto’s life seemed a little less exciting. He no longer really had anyone to hang out with whenever his parents or his godfather would leave. He had been on his own for awhile until he met a guy named Shikamaru. </p><p>	Middle school was a weird time for Naruto because he had begun to make new friends. Shikamaru was this lazy smart-ass that had sat in the back of the class with this other kid named Choji. Naruto had remembered them from elementary school but they hadn’t hung out then because Naruto didn’t really hang out with anyone else besides Sasuke during that time. One day during class, Shikamaru, Choji, and Naruto had been put into a group assignment together and somehow ended up hitting it off. From there they had become good friends. </p><p>	Through them, Naruto also became friends with his other classmates like Sai and Ino. Middle school had really broadened Naruto’s horizons because he finally had so many people to keep him company. Of course he still missed his childhood best friend, but there was nothing he could do. </p><p>	Entering highschool had been fun. Being with his friends made it go by fast. They had so many good times and a lot of amazing memories had been made with his friends. By the time he was in highschool, Naruto hadn’t been thinking about Sasuke too much as he knew by then that the dark haired boy must have moved on to his own stuff. He knew that Sasuke probably wasn’t thinking about him anymore. </p><p>	High school had been full of little hang outs and huge parties. His friends were pretty amazing he had to admit and as much of a little smart-ass Shikamaru was, he had always been there for Naruto. If Naruto had to trust someone with his life it would be Shikamaru. That man was like the brother he never had. </p><p>	When they all graduated high school, every single one of his friends did something different but they had all kept in touch. Shikamaru had followed in his father’s footsteps and went to law school to become the most badass lawyer Naruto knew. Choji went to culinary school and opened up his own restaurant. Sai had briefly gone to art school only to drop out and become an independent artist. That was apparently going great as Naruto had gone to multiple of Sai’s art exhibits and met so many high class people from them. Ino hadn’t gone to college but she did manage to turn the little mom and pop flower shop she inherited into a high dollar floral wedding boutique. Naruto’s friends were kickass and he was so proud of all of them. </p><p>	However, Naruto hadn’t known what he was going to do after he graduated. All his life he had been brought up on the idea that one day he would grow up and just like his dad, become a politician. When he was younger it was all he looked forward to but after high school one thing became extremely apparent.  Naruto was not cut out to be a politician. After years and years of witnessing all the bullshit his father and mother had to put up with because of politics, he despised the very idea of becoming associated with that life. </p><p>	Once he graduated he had told his parents this and although they were sad that the legacy of the Namikaze political line would end with Minato, they were very supportive about Naruto choosing what passion he wanted to pursue. </p><p>	Naruto had realized a couple of months after graduation that he wanted to go into childcare. At first, Ino had told him he should become some sort of luxury nanny so that he could make a lot of money. After all, Ino wanted people to go shopping with her and Sai. However, Naruto realized that he didn’t really care about how much money he made as long as he was happy so he decided that he wanted to get a regular daycare job.</p><p>	During this time is when he had met the Hyuga’s. At first he had only met Hanabi Hyuga. They had met at random when Hanabi had bumped into him on his way home from working at his dad’s office. They had gotten along fairly well when they met and Naruto found that Hanabi was super chill. From there he was introduced to Hinata Hyuga. He had found out that the Hyuga’s were widely known for their work in education and prestigious childcare. </p><p>	The Hyuga’s and Naruto had instantly clicked with their shared compassion for children. Things had fallen into place almost too perfectly when Hinata had offered Naruto a spot at the fancy little daycare the Hyuga’s ran. Naruto had jumped at the opportunity and before he knew it his life had completely shifted. </p><p>	Naruto had been happily working at the daycare for a couple months before he got the call that truly shifted his world. </p><p>	At this point in Naruto’s life he made a good amount of money and was pretty happy. His parents were happy for him and all his friends seemed really supportive, not to mention he was finally able to indulge Ino and Sai in their outrageous shopping trips. He was happy. </p><p>	One day near the end of his shift at the daycare, Naruto got a phone call from his father. Seeing as his dad never called him at work unless it was an emergency he answered the phone. </p><p>	The phone call had actually been pretty uneventful. His dad just said that he wanted Naruto to come over for dinner once he got off work and that his mother, Kushina, would be making his favorite ramen for dinner. Naruto never said no to a good ramen dinner. </p><p>	After work, Naruto quickly made his way over to his parents cottage. When he had gotten there he could smell the delicious scent of ramen wafting out the house when he walked through the door. His mother and father had greeted him with their usual loving and gentle arms. His mother lovingly picking fun at his messy hair from playing tag with the kids. </p><p>	Dinner that night had been pretty normal. Nothing really out of the norm, however it didn’t stay like that. After dinner his father had pulled him into the living room and sat him down as his mother cleaned up the dining room. Naruto remembered this conversation so clearly. </p><p>	Naruto remembers his dad looking at him with gentle eyes before asking him, “Do you ever feel like something is missing from your life, son?” </p><p>	When his dad asked this Naruto had no idea where he was planning to go with the topic. But as the conversation went on his dad began asking if Naruto wanted a romantic partner. This wasn’t weird at first because like any parent Naruto’s mom and dad had been consistently asking him when he was going to settle down, but this time seemed different. </p><p>	Naruto remembered that his dad had such a serious but gentle look on his face as if this time he really meant what he was asking. It had almost worried Naruto. </p><p>	That night Naruto found out that his old childhood friend, Sasuke, had reached out to their family wanting to speak with Naruto in hopes of pursuing a romantic relationship. </p><p>	 It had been a shock when his father told him. It had been years since they had seen each other and honestly it was hard to believe that Sasuke Uchiha of all people would ever want to pursue a romantic relationship with anyone, let alone someone like him. </p><p>	He almost wanted to say no when his parents told him that he should at least go meet the Uchiha in person to go “catch up”. However, Naruto has always been a softie when it came to the whims of his parents and decided to go. After all, at one point Sasuke had been Naruto’s closest friend and it would be a shame to not see him after all the years they had spent apart. </p><p>	After dinner, Naruto went home feeling weird. Not bad per say, but just weird. He had not been expecting his parents to pull something like that out at dinner and he certainly wasn’t expecting himself to agree. </p><p>	The next day at work, Naruto spoke to the Hyuga women about his situation. He remembers that Hanabi had thought that it was super suspicious that someone he hadn’t seen in so long suddenly wanted to be with him romantically and she had even pointed out how weird it was that Sasuke went to his parents rather than Naruto himself. Naruto had to agree it was weird, but Sasuke had been a good childhood friend so there probably was a reason for him acting weird. Hinata on the other hand seemed to be super supportive of him meeting the Uchiha. He could see why. Hinata was always generally supportive, but Hinata had always seemed to be particularly interested in finding Naruto a partner. After Hinata had begun dating a veterinarian that lived down the street named Kiba, she had suddenly become obsessed with finding her friends and family members a romantic partner. It was almost scary how happy she was when Naruto was talking about the stuff with Sasuke. However after the conversation with the Hyuga’s were done, Naruto still felt weird about the whole situation. </p><p>	Naruto had agreed to meet Sasuke on a Friday at a cute little local coffee shop. Naruto remembered that he had been nervous as hell to see Sasuke after all the years they had spent apart. He had no doubt that things would be different after all he knew for a fact that the youngest Uchiha was set to follow in his big shot father’s footsteps. Naruto had hoped that Sasuke hadn’t changed too much. Naruto absolutely despised stuck up rich people. Sasuke’s father, Fugaku, had already been on thin ice due to his classism. </p><p>	Naruto remembers the massive anxiety that exploded inside him when Sasuke had walked into the little coffee shop. It was almost scary how handsome the Uchiha had become. It wasn’t that Naruto had been surprised by it because it was well known that the Uchiha family were blessed with amazing genes but Sasuke almost seemed too pretty to be real. </p><p>	When Sasuke spotted Naruto’s blonde hair the dark haired man walked over to him sporting a small smile. It had made Naruto’s chest erupt knowing that this was in fact the person he had known as a child.</p><p>	When Sasuke sat down with him they spoke for what felt like forever catching up on all that they had missed in each other's lives. Naruto told Sasuke about his job at the Hyuga daycare and about all of his friends that he had made. Sasuke had told Naruto about his own friend group and that he was beginning his training to inherit a part of the Uchiha assets. It was really interesting and from what Naruto could tell Sasuke hadn’t seemed to have changed at all. It felt like how it was when they were kids. The conversation had been light and comfortable. </p><p>	After the meeting, Naruto agreed to continue meeting up with Sasuke so that they could rebuild their old friendship. Naruto was so happy and he hoped that Sasuke felt the same. </p><p>	The meetings soon turned into dates and from there soon a relationship had blossomed. Naruto felt love so deeply for Sasuke. He had felt like the reconnection must have been fate. That it was meant to be. It felt so right and in Naruto’s heart that was all that mattered. </p><p>	After two years of dating, Naruto proposed to the Uchiha. In Naruto’s heart, it was the best day of his life when Sasuke agreed to marry him. </p><p>	Looking back on it still gave Naruto butterflies in his stomach. The Uzumaki, no matter what happened, would always be fond of these memories with Sasuke. However, Naruto would have never thought that he would ever be where he was now. </p><p>	 Never in a million years did he think that he would come to find out that the man that he loved, the man that he gave his everything to would ruin what they had. </p><p>	Naruto never could have imagined that he would end up here.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I couldn't help myself guys!!! I had to do a Naruto chapter. I want you guys to be able to connect more with him in this story since the rest of the story focuses heavily on Sasuke. If you guys want another Naruto chapter let me know!  I don't think I'll do a lot of them but I'm open to doing more! Anyways, thank you guys for reading &lt;3 I hope you enjoyed it :)</p>
        </blockquote><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I hope that was okay oof. I haven't' written in a bit. Please leave your thoughts on the chapter below! I love feedback, also if you'd like more chapters please let me know!</p></blockquote></div></div>
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